Redeemed from sexual libertinism, prostitution, and occult, Fran Orvich tells his story

Orvich said he wanted to share his experience with same sex attraction "so that the Lord might touch hearts and that people repent and try returning to a chaste life." / Credit: Fran OrvichACI Prensa Staff, Apr 23, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).For the last five years Fran Orvich, 30, has been living chastely following a conversion process that began after a traumatic childhood and years of sexual libertinism.The young man shared his conversion process in a telephone interview with ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner, "for the glory of God and the salvation of souls and to give light, hope, and salvation to these poor brothers of ours who are in the Church and are very confused."Specifically, Orvich said he wanted to share his experience with same-sex attraction "so that the Lord might touch hearts and that people repent and try returning to a chaste life."A difficult childhoodWhile only five years have passed since his conversion, to explain what he has experienced Or...

Could Florida become the first state to defeat an abortion amendment?

People join together during a "Rally to Stop the Six-Week Abortion Ban" held at Lake Eola Park on April 13, 2024, in Orlando, Florida. / Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 23, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).The Florida Supreme Court recently made national headlines when it issued two significant abortion rulings on the same day. One ruling cleared the way for a law to take effect that protects unborn life at six weeks and beyond. The other allowed a far-reaching abortion proposal, titled the Limiting Government Interference with Abortion Amendment, to be placed on the November ballot.If passed, the amendment would change the Florida Constitution to include a provision reading: "No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's health care provider."With the abortion amendment now officially on the ballot in Florida, many will be looking...

Bishops: Catholic Church in Spain unjustly singled out in plan to address sexual abuse

Archbishop Luis Argüello and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. / Credit: Archdiocese of Valladolid; La MoncloaACI Prensa Staff, Apr 23, 2024 / 15:00 pm (CNA).The Spanish government approved today in the Council of Ministers a plan to implement recommendations made in a report on sexual abuse within the Catholic Church. While recognizing some good points in the plan, the Spanish Bishops' Conference (known by its Spanish acronym CEE) issued a statement strongly objecting to what it called unfair treatment and discrimination against the Church by the government.Before giving details of the government's plan, the minister of the Presidency, Justice, and Relations with the Legislature, Félix Bolaños, extrapolating data from a survey commissioned by the People's Ombudsman, estimated that in Spain there are about 440,000 adults who were victims of sexual abuse as minors, representing 1.13% of the adult population in Spain."Around half of these abuses would have been committed...

A year after earthquake, Aleppo's St. George Church rises again

Over a year after the earthquake that hit Syria and Turkey in February 2023, restoration of Aleppo's Church of St. George has been completed. / Credit: Abdul Kareem DanielAleppo, Syria, Apr 23, 2024 / 14:15 pm (CNA).This year's feast of St. George was a particularly joyful one in the Syrian city of Aleppo, especially for the Melkite Greek Catholic community. The church is reopening its doors after undergoing restoration due to damage from a February 2023 earthquake. Additionally, Archbishop George Masri of the Melkite Archdiocese of Aleppo and its environs will celebrate his golden jubilee.The celebrations took place during the visit of Patriarch Joseph Absi, the current patriarch of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, who presided over the Divine Liturgy in the restored church on the evening of April 23. The evening before, there was a procession along Holy Bible Street followed by vespers.Restoration of the Church of St. George in Aleppo after the February 2023 earthquake...

'An unprecedented opportunity': Augustine Institute announces move to St. Louis 

The Augustine Institute's new facilities in Florissant, Missouri. / Credit: Boeing Company and Augustine InstituteCNA Staff, Apr 23, 2024 / 13:30 pm (CNA).The Augustine Institute, a Catholic educational and evangelization apostolate based in Denver for nearly two decades, announced on Tuesday that it will be moving its operations to a new campus in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. The institute, founded in 2005 as a Catholic graduate theology school, currently has an enrollment of 550 students. It says on its website that it exists to serve "the formation of Catholics for the new evangelization" by "equip[ping] Catholics intellectually, spiritually, and pastorally to renew the Church and transform the world for Christ."The organization announced on Tuesday that it had purchased the former Boeing Leadership Center in Florissant, Missouri, just outside of downtown St. Louis. The school will "begin transitioning its operations over the next few years," it said in ...

Pew Research: Biden in trouble with Catholic voters

President Joe Biden leaves after attending Mass at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 27, 2023. / Credit: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty ImagesPittsburgh, Pa., Apr 22, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).Incumbent U.S. President Joe Biden, a Catholic, is battling a high unfavorability rating among his fellow Catholics, according to survey data released by the Pew Research Center.According to the data, neither Biden nor his Republican rival, former president Donald Trump, are viewed favorably by a majority of Catholics surveyed, but Biden is the more unpopular of the two.The findings were part of a presentation on "Religion and Politics Ahead of the U.S. Elections" by Pew's associate director of research, Greg Smith, at the 2024 annual conference of the Religion News Association, which concluded over the weekend.Included in the data provided by Smith, Pew's late February survey of 12,000 U.S. adults found that only 35% of Catholics hold a favorable view of Biden while 64% have...

 5 Catholic ways to celebrate Earth Day 

Credit: (CC0 1.0)CNA Staff, Apr 22, 2024 / 04:00 am (CNA).Since 1970, Earth Day has been celebrated yearly on April 22 to demonstrate support worldwide for environmental protection. The Catholic Church has a long tradition of calling for proper stewardship of the earth. In May 2015, Pope Francis published Laudato Si', an encyclical focusing on care for the natural environment and includes topics such as global warming and environmental degradation. He then released a follow-up document to the encyclical on Oct. 4, 2023, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, to address current issues.In honor of Earth Day and in response to the Holy Father's message urging the faithful to take action in protecting the environment, here are five ways Catholics can celebrate Earth Day.1) Spend time with God in nature. Consider going on a hike or simply take a walk outside and spend time in prayer thanking God for his beautiful creation. You can also find a nice spot to sit and contemplate ...

Thousands of pro-lifers attend 'joy-filled' Illinois March for Life

Pro-lifers participate in the Illinois March for Life in Springfield, April 17, 2024. / Credit: Photo courtesy of March for LifeWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 22, 2024 / 15:00 pm (CNA).Thousands of pro-lifers, including many groups of Catholic high school and college students, attended the Illinois March for Life in Springfield last week.Jeanne Mancini, president of March for Life, told CNA that the march was "joy-filled" and "hopeful" and had a large youth turnout.Catholic youth from "Crusaders for Life," a pro-life group from St. John Cantius Parish in Chicago, was one such group that traveled several hours to participate in the event.The group's members could be seen at the front of the march holding brightly colored umbrellas and inflatables. Many of the young people cheered, danced, and played drums and cymbals, while others in the crowd chanted pro-life slogans and prayed.Thousands show up in Illinois to March for Life. Incredible. pic.twitte...

Italy set to pass amendment allowing pro-life groups into family planning clinics 

Participants in Italy's pro-life demonstration in Rome on May 21, 2022. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNARome, Italy, Apr 22, 2024 / 14:15 pm (CNA).An amendment to a health care law that permits "nonprofits with experience providing maternity support" in family planning clinics, including pro-life groups, will be voted on by the Italian Senate on Tuesday, April 23, according to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.  Amendment No. 44.028, a provision attached to a health care system law, part of Italy's National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), would allow local public health authorities to freely collaborate with qualified third-party consultants, including nonprofit organizations that specialize in pregnancy and maternity support, "without new or greater burdens on public finance," according to the news site Centro Studi Livatino. Last week, the Brothers of Italy party, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, introduced the amendment to the Chamber of Deputies,...

For first time, incurably ill patient undergoes euthanasia in Peru

Ana Estrada, 47, suffered from polymyositis, an incurable disease that left her confined to a wheelchair. Since 2019, she had been been petitioning Peruvian courts to recognize a right to euthanasia. / Credit: Jessica Alva Piedra CC BY-SA 4.0 DEEDACI Prensa Staff, Apr 22, 2024 / 18:00 pm (CNA).On Sunday, April 21, Peruvian activist Ana Estrada underwent a euthanasia process and died. The terminology employed did not indicate whether it was by direct euthanasia or medically assisted suicide.Euthanasia is not legal in Peru, but the nation's Supreme Court nevertheless ruled in favor of her appeal.According to a statement released by various Peruvian media, the activist "died on her own terms, in accordance with her idea of dignity and in full control of her autonomy until the end.""The medical procedure was carried out in accordance with the 'Plan and Protocol for Death with Dignity' applicable to Ana, approved by EsSalud, in the context of the historic ruling in her favor, i...